Getting the train

Yesterday involved a lot of train travel, lots of changes and lots of encounters with the lovely and not so lovely people you find dotted around London.





I will start with a lovely encounter. It started as one of those awkward moments when you realise a baby is looking at you and making noises to get your attention. I smiled at this baby and received a massive grin in response. This is just the first stage of baby-adult interaction. I then completely subconsciously began to pull funny faces, again to the great amusement of the baby. I stuck my tongue out, darted my eyes about and many peculiar shapes with my mouth. The response was laughter and what looked like an attempt to imitate my lunacy. It was then that I caught the eye of the baby's dad, including an embarrassed smile that said "Yes I am pulling faces at your child, is that a problem?" When they both got off the train it occurred to me how socially unnacceptable it is to pull faces at people on the train but how normal it seems to do it to a baby. I would love to be able to catch the eye of a man in a suit, a woman with her shopping etc and start pulling faces with them, it would make train journeys so much happier.

When getting off a train I placed myself next to the door-opening button. As we approached the station a few people gathered behind me to get off with me. It then dawned on me that I was in a position of power, and with great power comes great responsibility, every one of them now expects and trusts me to open the door when the train comes to a standstill, it was now my duty to open the door and allow these people to get on with their lives. Only once have I seen a man fail at this mighty duty, he was stood by the only button and failed to respond to the orange lights flashing. You could feel the tension around him, he just stood there. After several nervous seconds I brought it upon myself to relieve him of his power and leant past him to press his button. He was very apologetic and I banished him from my door opening kingdom
(in my head) before getting off myself.

You get much less likeable people on public transport, earlier this week I had my back stroked by a rather drunk and scruffy man while getting on a tube train, I was not too worried though, I could have " 'ad 'im" and I was surrounded by friends to back me up. The tube seems to be a breeding ground for miserable people, I get irritated with a lot of things in life but never enough to shout at a stranger. At Waterloo station a man failed to get off the train in the unspoken agreed getting off time and as people started getting on he said in a quiet but incredibly angry voice "Let passengers off first please!" A woman immediatly responded with the piercing, witty comeback of "You don't have to be so rude to my face!" I however took the true Londoner approach and silently said "dickhead" under my breath. I was relieved at the fact that despite me getting irritated at little things, I will never be angry or horrible enough to shout at a stranger.

I love the train.